MaruZeku Laughter
by WaitingWatching
Summary: The Organization decides to see exactly what it will take to make the reserved Schemer laugh.


Maruzeku- Laughter

The library in the Castle That Never Was, was unusually full. Even more strange was the fact that the castle's resident bibliophile wasn't with the other nobodies, reading as usual. In fact, it was so strange that some of the older members of the organization where just getting slightly worried about his unexplained absence, when a CoD appeared in their midst and the Schemer walked out.

The reason for nonattendance was immediately answered by the observation that his slate coloured hair was damp. He scowled almost as soon as he entered the room- apparently because of the large amount of people in it. Xigbar, Luxord, Axel, Roxas, Marluxia and Demyx where all loitering around, each pursuing some task or other. The newcomer instantly pounced on the redhead who was- stupidly- trying to set fire to one of the shelves of books.

"Axel" Zexion demanded in a deceivingly calm tone. "I advise you to either leave or read if you wish to still have all your limbs by the end of today"

The pyro had absolutely no idea how the blunette could decapitate any of his body parts, but previous experience told him that Zexion's threats where rarely idle. Backing away from the bookshelves he grinned innocently.

"Heya Zexy"

"Don't call me that" the blunette replied reflexively. Axel smirked and drifted casually behind Roxas' chair. Despite the fact that the small blonde was watching his friends every move, the latter still managed to tip him off and steal his seat.

"Ow! Axel there are plenty of chairs, why did you have too nick mine?!"

Quietly disengaging his attention, Marluxia looked back to his plants book and resumed reading. The friends bickered on, entertaining some of the others for a while until something else caught their attention.

"Here Zexy" Demyx said cheerily, throwing Zexion a rectangular blue towel that he'd just pulled from a corridor. It missed the damp teen's hands by miles instead landing on his wet hair. Everyone in the room- baring Zexion- laughed as it had landed with a corner covering his eye in the same manner his hair usually did.

Zexion rather spoiled it by dragging the towel back off his head and glaring at everyone till they stopped. Marluxia sighed with faint annoyance as Xigbar asked;

"Dude you have an extensive vocabulary, right?" Xigbar quizzed

"Correct"

"So why isn't the word 'laughter' in it?"

"Laughter- noun. The action or sound of laughing. An inner quality or disposition. An expression or appearance of amusement or merriment"

Xigbar shook his head. "Not what I meant little man"

"Stop mocking my height. And what else could you mean? Obviously you do not question why I never laugh? As a nobody- a being without emotion it is impossible for me to experience humour, therefore I have no reason too or purpose in laughing"

"Not true" Demyx intervened, unexpectedly.

"Laughter isn't always related to jokes and stuff" Demyx said, rapidly losing confidence as everyone in the room looked at him.

Roxas took over. "He's right; it's been related to social bonding and interaction between people"

"Have you been talking to any of the apprentices?" Luxord demanded promptly.

"Uh, no?"

"The blonde has a brain" Xigbar announced.

Marluxia tilted his head sending his cascade of pink hair over his shoulder as he watched Luxord, Roxas and Demyx complain simultaneously. Taking advantage of his adversaries' momentary lapse in attention, Zexion grabbed a book and slipped into a seat. Marluxia and Axel observed him thoughtfully.

"I have an idea" Axel proclaimed.

"Uh-oh" Roxas and Demyx said together.

"The first one to make Zexion laugh, gets free sea salt ice cream for a year"

There was a pause. "I'm in" "Me too!" "Deal" "Radical!"

"What about you Marly?"

"Sure, why not? But who pays for the ice-cream when I win?"

"When I win, the rest of you buy me ice-cream for the year" Axel smirked.

"In your dreams"

"What happens when you all fail?" Zexion intercepted, boredom tinting his tone. Everyone looked over at him.

"Don't be so confident" Demyx whined.

"Don't be so stupid either. One of us will make you laugh" Axel promised.

"On your heads be it"

"How about we make things more interesting, eh?" Luxord suggested. "End of today?"

"You're on" Xigbar and Axel said together.

Zexion frowned as all 6 of them disappeared. This was going to be long day...

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The rest of the day the poor anti-social Zexion was plagued by what seemed like the entire Organization. Word had got out that the 6 that had been in the library that morning, were on a mission to make the solemn Schemer laugh. Even the usually sensible(ish) Vexen and Saix had been won over with the promise of a year's worth of ice-cream.

The blunette had only just escaped from Demyx and Roxas who had been firing jokes of increasing madness and ridicule at him since he had left the library three hours ago. In between ignoring the two persistent teenagers he had been weaving around various members in absurd situations- Xemnas' usually white and black robes had been dyed, so that the white areas where now pink, then apparently stuffed into it backwards and zipped up. He had also somehow ended up with a neon pink bucket crammed onto his head. Zexion had suspected Axel had had a hand in it, till he had released his superior and been informed that it had been Xaldin that had cornered him and forced him into his bizarre attire. That snippet of information had rather thrown Zexion;

"Exactly how much do they all want a year's worth of ice cream?" he wondered aloud, sneaking back inside the library, which was thankfully deserted.

"Maybe we simply want to hear you laugh?" a voice suggested from behind him.

Zexion sighed and twisted round to look at Marluxia; the library had looked deserted.

"And why would anyone want that?"

"Believe it or not Zeku, some people actually like you. Don't ask why; all you do is ignore most of us"

The blunette was silent.

The pink-haired nobody's tone took on a teasing note. "Or maybe that just adds to the attraction. Everyone loves a mystery novel"

"I am not a book" was all the bibliophile could come up with.

"Of course not" Marluxia answered easily, like a parent pacifying a child.

"Stop being patronizing" Zexion ordered.

"Okay, superior" the floral mage agreed, stressing the last word.

"I said stop it!" Zexion noted with irritation that his voice was adopting a whiney childish manner.

"Okay, okay" Marluxia smirked, slauntering past the irate Schemer in a way that suggested he was leaving.

Deciding it was better to simply blank the annoying nobody out Zexion walked over to the sofa and summoned his Lexicon. Sitting down and flicking through the book to find his page, - without turning around- Zexion back to Marluxia in an uncharacteristically immature way;

"Does this mean you give up?"

Zexion barely had time to register the black and pink blur zooming towards him before it had gracefully catapulted over the back of the sofa and pinned the nobody to the seat.

"Of course not" Marluxia smirked from his position above the blunette. Zexion gave a barely audible groan.

"Get off me" Though he was not entirely sure why, Zexion regretted the words almost as soon as he had spoken them.

"No"

Zexion hissed in discontent. "So how long are we going to stay here?"

"Until you laugh"

"Then it is fortunate that nobodies do not need food nor drink to survive, because if that was the case we would soon both be dead"

"Even if we did need such things, I doubt either of us would die in the space of 45 seconds"

"45 seconds? You are deluded if you think you can make me laugh in any period of time, let alone 45 seconds" Zexion informed him.

"We'll see" Marluxia grinned. A second later the pink-haired nobody had taken off his black gloves and dug his fingers under Zexion chin.

"What are you-"he broke off and started wriggling around. "Stop it" he pleaded.

"Oh, your ticklish are you?" Marluxia said triumphantly. "That's good news"

Zexion twisted desperately to try and escape Marluxia's fingers, biting down on his lip to stop the inevitable laugh from escaping him.

Exactly 39 seconds after the schemer gave in. Laughing uncontrollably he gasped;

"M-marluxia, will you s-s-stop now?!"

"Nope" Marluxia laughed himself. "This is too fun"

They ended up falling off the sofa. Which led to some very interesting rumours...

They blame Xigbar.


End file.
